Johnson County Armory and Veterans Memorial completes monument expansion

The Johnson County Commission of Veterans Affairs has expanded the Armory and Veterans Memorial with a black granite monument. The monument will create space to honor an additional 160 veterans.

The memorial was installed in August 2013 at the site of the old Armory, near the Johnson County Administration Building, located at 913 S. Dubuque St. in Iowa City. It serves as a permanent place of honor for families, friends and community members to visit and reflect, and to remember those who served our country. The memorial features the original walkway installed in 2013 honoring 605 veterans and two raised memorial brick paver beds installed in 2018 using repurposed Iowa City Ped Mall bricks. These raised beds honor 242 additional veterans.

Veterans do not need to be Johnson County residents to be honored. The cost to inscribe the name of an honored veteran is $150.

An order form, veteran biographies, and the history of the memorial are available at www.johnsoncountyiowa.gov/memorial.

The Armory, constructed in 1937, was destroyed during the 2008 floods. The memorial was created not only to honor Johnson County veterans and supporters, but also to educate the public on the history of the Armory. It incorporates the Armory’s original cornerstone, reproductions of the concrete medallions from the Armory depicting the crest of each unit stationed there at the time of its construction, two interpretive signage panels with the Armory’s history in text and photographs, and an interactive Kiosk.

The expansion has been completed at the Johnson County Armory and Veterans Memorial, with a black polished granite stone sitting on a concrete base, surrounded by brick paths built from the repurposed Iowa City Ped Mall bricks.

The mission of Johnson County Commission of Veterans Affairs is to assist Veterans and eligible dependents apply for benefits they may be eligible for. The Johnson County Veterans Affairs office is located in the Health and Human Services Building, 855 South Dubuque St., Suite 109C, Iowa City, IA 52240.